Mail-bag catcher.



No. 803,379. PATENTED OCT. 31, 1905. J. WHITE & B. THOMAS. MAIL BAG GATGHER.

APPLICATION FILED mums, 1905.

UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE.

MAIL-BAG CATCHER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Oct. 31, 1905.

Application filed July 18, 1905. Serial No. 270,212.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, JAMES WHITE and ED- WARD THOMAS, citizens of the United States, residing at Patterson, in the parish of St. Mary and State of Louisiana, have invented new and useful Improvements in Mail-Bag Catchers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mail-bag catchers, the object of the invention being to provide a device of this character which is simple of construction and effective in operation, which may be readily set for operation, and which is adapted to positively engage and hold a bag and prevent accidental disengagement of the bag therefrom.

Y The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in'the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a top plan view of the improved mail-bag catcher, showing the same set for operation; and Fig. Qisasimilar view showing the position of the catcher-arms when released to engage and clamp a bag against the catcherframe.

Referring now more particularly to' the drawings, the numeral 1 represents a controlling-lever adapted to be pivotally mounted, as at 2, upon the side wall of a mail-car or support alongside the track and provided 'with a substantially U-shaped or bail-shaped catch-frame 3, disposed with its major axis at right angles thereto.

Arranged at opposite sides of the frame 3 are catcher-arms 4 and 5, each of said arms being eccentrically pivoted to the adjacent side of the frame by a pivot-pin or trunnion 6, the opposite ends of the arms being curved outwardly beyond the plane of the body portion thereof. The short end of each arm is connected by a contractile spring 7 to the adjacent side of the frame 3 in advance of the pivotal connections 6, the two springs being adapted by contraction to draw the short ends of the arms outward, and thereby swing the long ends of said arms inwardly toward the intermediate or return portion of the frame 3, as shown in Fig. 2, from which it will be seen that when the arms are thus swung inwardly they will lie transversely across the same, the inner edge of the long end of each arm engaging the pivot-pin of the other arm and being thereby limited from further inward movement under the action of the springs 7. Arranged upon the sides of the frame 3, adjacent to the mouth or open end thereof,are stop pins or projections 8, which are engaged by the outer edges of the long ends of the arms, and thus hold said portions of the arms from outward movement under the action of the springs 7 Pivoted to the arm A is a trigger'or latchlever 9, which is adapted to be swung transversely of the frame and to engage at its free end a keeper notch or recess 10, formed in the arm 5, to hold said arms spread apart and set for operation, as shown in Fig. 1. The stoppins 8 prevent any lateral oscillation of the two arms under the pull of the springs 7when said arms are set for operation, thereby preventing all liability of accidental disengagement of the latch 9 from the keeper-recess 10.

In operation the catcher is swung outward by manipulating the lever 1 to bring the mouth or open end of the catcher-frame 3 in the plane of the bag to be caught and the catcher-arms set and locked in the position shown in Fig. 1. When the bag contacts with the latch 9, the latter will be swung inwardly and out of engagement with the recess 10, thus permitting the springs 7 to swing the arms to the. position shown in Fig. 2, whereby the long ends of said arms will clamp the bag against the closecLend or return portion of the bail-frame.

Owing to the fact that the arms are maintained in clamping position by the action of the springs 7, it will be seen that the bag will .be firmly and securely held in the catcherframe and prevented from casually dropping out of the same.

The construction of the device is so simple that there is very little liability of any of the parts becoming deranged and as a consequence the bag willbe caught and held clamped until released and cannot become disengaged from the frame during the catching operation.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A mail-bag catcher comprising a bail-shaped receiving-frame, catcher-arms ecccntrically pivoted to the sides of said frame and having outwardly-curved ends, springs connecting the short ends of the arms to the frame in ad- In testimony whereof We aflix our signatures Vance of the pivotal connections, stops upon in presence of tWo Witnesses. the frame engaged by the long ends of the JAMES WHITE. arms to limit the outward movement thereof, EDWARD THOMAS. 5 and a latch pivotally mounted upon one arm WVitnesses:

and adapted to engage the other arm to hold J. E. SASSUS,

said arms in set position. J. E. MUNROE, Jr. 

